Alma Doepel (ship)

The "Alma Doepel" is a three-masted topsail schooner and is one of the oldest such ships surviving.

"Alma Doepel" was built in 1903 in Bellingen, NSW, by Frederik Doepel, and named after his youngest daughter Alma. She sailed mainly around the coast of Australia, carrying goods such as timber, wheat and jam. She was also used in World War II as a supply vessel in Papua New Guinea, before returning to commercial service around Tasmania in 1946. From 1961 to 1975 she was stripped of her rigging and used to carry limestone, before being sold, for the scrap value of her engines, to the Melbourne company Sail & Adventure in 1976.

From 1976 to 1987, "Alma Doepel" was comprehensively restored and returned to full sail in magnificent style to lead the Parade of Sail in Sydney Harbour in January 1988. After that, she was used as a sail training ship, based in Melbourne, until 1999 when the need for work on the hull and lack of funds put a stop to this activity.

In April 2001, "Alma Doepel" was taken to Port Macquarie and is currently undergoing repairs.

References

*cite book|last=Schauffelen|first=Otmar|title=Chapman Great Sailing Ships of the World|publisher=Hearst Books|year=2005|isbn=1588163849

External links

* [http://www.almadoepel.com.au/ "Alma Doepel" website]